Pages

Russia, Kazakhstan and Turkey expanded their gold holdings in December, seeking to diversify their foreign reserves and protect from currency devaluation risk. Russian gold holdings climbed 2.1% to 957.8 metric tons or 30.793 million ounces, according to data on the International Monetary Fund’s website. The increase in December takes the increase in Russian gold reserves in 2012 to 8.5%. The Russian central bank has said that they will continue buying gold. The pace of the purchases may vary, First Deputy Chairman Alexei Ulyukayev told reporters this month. He denied that there is a 10% target for gold’s share in the reserves according to Bloomberg.

From Goldcore:
Today’s AM fix was USD 1,656.75, EUR 1,232.43, and GBP 1,052.77 per ounce.
Friday’s AM fix was USD 1,670.25, EUR 1,243.39, and GBP 1,058.93 per ounce.
Silver
is trading at $30.90/oz, €23.08/oz and £19.74/oz. Platinum is trading
at $1,689.00/oz, palladium at $741.00/oz and rhodium at $1,200/oz.Cross Currency Table – Bloomberg
Gold
fell $8.80 or 0.53%% in New York on Friday and closed at $1,658.90/oz.
Silver saw an initial gain hitting $31.77 in Asia, but it then slipped
to a low of $31.11 in New York and finished with a loss of 1.45%. Gold
was down 1.50% on the week, while silver fell a further 2.01%.Gold in USD 2 Years – (Bloomberg)
Gold was slightly lower on Monday, as the poor short term technical picture dimmed bullion’s safe haven appeal.
European
banks will repay more than 130 billion euros of crisis loans to the
European Central Bank next week, making payments earlier than expected.
European
leaders still warned although the single currency has stabilized the
crisis in Europe has not abated, noting it will take years to recover
and highlighted the mass unemployment on the continent. The euro is now
on an eleven month high verses the U.S. dollar.
The U.S. CFTC numbers for the week finished January 22nd show that net long bets were raised for gold and silver.
The
Standard & Poor’s 500 Index closed above 1,500 for the first time
in over 5 years on Friday on strong U.S. earnings reports, including
Procter & Gamble’s, helped the benchmark extend its rally to 8 days.Silver in USD, 2 Years – (Bloomberg)
Russia,
Kazakhstan and Turkey expanded their gold holdings in December, seeking
to diversify their foreign reserves and protect from currency
devaluation risk.
Russian gold holdings climbed 2.1% to 957.8
metric tons or 30.793 million ounces, according to data on the
International Monetary Fund’s website.
The increase in December takes the increase in Russian gold reserves in 2012 to 8.5%.
The
Russian central bank has said that they will continue buying gold. The
pace of the purchases may vary, First Deputy Chairman Alexei Ulyukayev
told reporters this month.
He denied that there is a 10% target for gold’s share in the reserves according to Bloomberg
Kazakhstan’s
gold reserves expanded 1.7 percent to 115.3 tons or 3.707 million
ounces last month, and surged 41% over the year, the data showed.
Turkey’s
holdings jumped 14.5% to 359.65 tons last month, according to the IMF
data. The amount has increased due to it accepting gold in its reserve
requirements from commercial banks.
Philippines gold reserves fell
1% in November from October while Mexico’s holdings were down 0.1
percent in December to 4.004 million ounces, according to the IMF.
Iraq
cut its gold holdings by a quarter to 29.9 tonnes in November,
reversing some of the country’s recent efforts to bolster its reserves.
Countries
bought 373.9 tons in the first nine months of last year, according to
the producer-funded World Gold Council, which said in November that
full-year additions for 2012 would probably be at the “bottom end” of a
range from 450 to 500 tons. Central banks purchased 456 tons in 2011.
Central bank diversification will continue to give long term support to gold.Palladium in USD, 2 Years – (Bloomberg)
Tightness in the platinum and palladium markets has begun to see prices move higher.
Palladium
reserves in Russia, the world’s largest producer of the metal, are
“pretty much exhausted” and sales this year may be only 3 metric tons,
according to Johnson Matthey Plc.
Russian inventory sales dropped
68 percent to 250,000 ounces last year from 775,000 ounces in 2011,
according to Johnson Matthey.
Shrinking Russian stockpiles at a time when output is falling helped send the metal into the biggest shortage in 12 years.
Output
in South Africa, the second-biggest producer, was disrupted by labor
disputes and strikes, while lower grades contributed to a decline in
Russia.
Palladium for immediate delivery has risen again today and
is trading at $741/oz. Palladium, last quarter’s best-performing
precious metal, has risen 5.4% this year after advancing 7.5% in 2012.
Palladium supply declined 12% in 2012 to 6.48 million ounces on the South African disruptions.Platinum in USD, 2 Years – (Bloomberg)
Platinum
supply dropped 10% to 5.68 million ounces because of declines in top
producer South Africa, coming to less than the 5.84 million ounces
forecast in November, according to Johnson Matthey.
Zimbabwe was the only major producing nation to increase output, Duncan said.
Platinum
supply probably will be curbed further because of difficulties in South
Africa, while auto catalyst demand is expected to stay “flat” this
year, before a “much stronger” 2014, according to JM. NEWSGold Little Changed in Asia on Weak Technicals; Precious Metals … – Wall Street JournalGold Climbs as Russia, Kazakhstan Central Banks Boost Holdings – BloombergRussia, Kazakhstan Expand Gold Reserves as Central Banks Buy – Bloomberg$80 Million Worth of Gold Flown Out; Officials Tight-lipped – Ghana WebSilicosis suit could crush S.Africa’s gold mining sector – South China Morning Post COMMENTARYVideo: Bianco and Marcin Like Gold, Expect Price to Rise – BloombergHow to profit from a plummeting pound – The TelegraphSinclair: Defend Yourself By Not Giving In – JS MinesetUS Facing Fresh Financial Shock to Economy – CNBC
By Silverdoctors